Conservatives Abroad put their foot in it - TWICE!

Bernard Hazell, chairman of the Conservatives Abroad in Gibraltar, continues to put his foot in it. Yesterday, in a letter to PANORAMA he demonstrated that he does not know what is a 'protest vote' in political terms, and then, in another development, he denied to GBC that they were contemplating starting a local political party when GBC understood the opposite during a television interview on Sunday.

In his letter to us, which we published yesterday in full, Mr Hazell said that it was not a protest vote that had given the Conservatives their election win. It was incorrect to say that!

He also said: "Myself and the Vice Chairman spent all day outside the polling station in Varyl Beggs (sic) and I did not get the impression that it was a protest vote."

Oh dear,what was he expecting to see? Mr Hazell does not seem to know that in political terms a 'protest vote' is what happened during the election - the electorate largely voting against Labour for trying to give Gibraltar what it does not want.

Not only do we give it that interpretation, but his own Conservatives Abroad association agrees with PANORAMA!

In the Gibraltar website for Conservatives Abroad, it is stated that "the effective landslide can be seen as a massive protest against the 'shared sovereignty' policy of the Labour Government."

How about that?!

He also thinks it was an excellent effort by the Gibraltar Conservatives. He is entitled to think that as well.

Mr Hazell also misinterprets a brief item where it was said that in an overall South-west context, the Gibraltar vote was dwarfed.

Having spent a lifetime defending Gibraltar and its people, we can do without silly comments by an outsider who clearly has no clue about politics in general and about Gibraltar politics in particular.

Mr Hazell should best devote his time in doing what he knows best, which is being a partner at the Moore Stephens accountancy firm.

In fact, the Conservative Party itself says that "Conservatives Abroad is the organisation established to provide overseas membership of the Conservative Party. It aims to both identify and register Conservative voters and to provide a forum for like-minded people to meet and socialise."

WHAT A PARTY!

Clearly, their aim is to be supportive of the Conservative Party in the UK. So what is this talk of Mr Hazell's Conservatives Abroad and the formation of a local political party?

Mr Hazell has now got himself in controversy with GBC.

In an interview on Sunday, GBC's Gerard Teuma asked him whether the overwhelming support they had received would encourage the Tories to stand for election to the House of Assembly.

Mr Hazell replied that this was an issue that had already been discussed, but because they did not want to split the local vote they would have to take a long, hard look before taking a final decision.

GBC reported yesterday: Despite this comment, Mr Hazell has today issued a statement saying there is no intention, and there has never been any thought given to the Association becoming involved in local general elections.

Not only that, but the Association's constitution would not allow for his!

ABSURD, SAYS CHIEF MINISTER

And that's not the end of the story. When GBC's Stephen Neish asked the Chief Minister about the possibility of the Conservatives Abroad contemplating starting a local political party, Mr Caruana replied: "If they did that they would be in grave risk of losing their deposit."

He added:

"I really don't see that the people of Gibraltar are going to vote to be governed by politicians other than from Gibraltar and that the idea that politicians would be imported to stand in Gibraltar's national election with any expectation to run Gibraltar for the people of Gibraltar, I think is extraordinarily naive. I don't think there can be any seriousness in that suggestion."

There may be local people on the fringes of politics who could jump into the political scene calling themselves the Gibraltar Conservative Party. "I wouldn't expect them to fare much better," said Mr Caruana, but it would be absurd for the UK Conservative Party getting involved in Gibraltar local politics.

WATCHDOG

Why pay for an amateur TV station?

Where in the world does a Government charge its people a licence for owning a television set and a radio? I know that England does. Who else?

Oh yes... and Gibraltar of course...When are we going to stop imitating them and following their footsteps? We are a people, we are Gibraltarians.

Geographically, we are in the continent of Europe with a totally different mentality and culture to those across the channel.

Pay a licence fee of £30 a year for what? To support an amateur television station? Very rarely I tune in to GBC TV and when I do, I am ashamed and I feel embarrassed just to think that possibly there are other foreign nationals watching the news always talking about the same crap over and over again.

Then you have those interviewers that have as little personality as maple tree in the winter time.

Television and Radio stations around the world fall inside a category of a very lucrative money making business, and that is what it is... A Business...that makes its profit from commercial advertisements sold as air time.

Naturally, one has to ask "What company wants to invest in advertising with GBC TV if their viewers are only a handfull?

Yet, here we are, having to pay a licence fee for real garbage and bad amateur programmes.

Just recently, we (our Government that is) handed out around £1 million in subsidies and to guarantee the running of GBC.

How long must we go on allowing Peter Caruana to spend our money in a non-intelligent way and getting nothing in return? Because that is a lot of money.

Who in Gibraltar watches GBC TV anyway? Very few, and that is a fact.

Most everyone in Gib subscribe to cable TV and the great majority tune in either to UK or Spanish channels.. So tell me...Why pay a licence?

GBC should not be subsidised and should be left alone to run as a private entity.

Perhaps if GBC were to become more professional instead of staying in the minor leagues, then their ratings would increase and consequently attract big and small businesses, local and foreign to invest in advertising their products.

The truth of the matter is that GBC have had it very easy for years knowing that our Governments (past & present) have been there for they financial needs..

So why worry? why bother? they have a job, they have their salaries y viva la Pepa.

To Mr. Caruana I say: Stop charging those ridiculous TV/Radio licence fees which he is unjustifyingly collecting and put an end to giving GBC any more money that belongs to the people of Gibraltar.

Public treated like a ping-pong ball

Trying to get correct answers from Government employees (Civil Servants) is like pulling teeth without a pair of pliers and although some take it as a joke, it is not a joke any longer.

How many times have you had to go back and forth because you have not been given the right information or the right forms to fill in.

And how many times have you been sent to another office where they've told you that you must go back to the office that originally sent you to them.

Confusing how I wrote that? well, that's how people feel. Just like a Ping Pong Ball bounced from one place to another.

Yet, one must not and should not blame these employees put behind those counters giving the public a lousy service.

Put the blame on their employer(the Government) for not giving them training proper training and for the lack of supervision.

But there again, I have my feelings that even those departmental heads who are supposed to have the answers, haven't had good training themselves.

We in Gibraltar are a very complacent people and for one reason or another avoid using a demanding attitude when necessary, so as not to hurt feelings. Think about it!!

Your/our time is being wasted because of the lack of knowledge in their jobs. The way we seem to let go of our frustrations is by saying : ay que ver la de veces que he tenido que venir para que me arreglaran esto o lo otro porque no saben lo que hacen!!

I am sure these words sound very familiar to you... don't they? You bet...

If we want Government services to improve, we must launch written complaints to those at 6 Convent Place.

I know some people appear to be afraid of being indentified.

But it is the only way that they'll listen. We hope.

We are a small town and should have a service that we could be proud of because they are working for a better Gibraltar and to simplify the day to day living for Gibraltarians.

So I ask you to please get onto those so called politicians and voice your dissatisfactions in writing.

If you feel that after a reasonable time you have had no answer or if the answer given is unsatisfactory, write to me with a copy of your complaint, slip it inside an envelope addressed to my attention.

I promise you that I will keep your name strictly confidential and can tell you that I will use the strongest words in my vocabulary to criticise those officials responsible.

The least thing a politician needs and wants is bad publicity and believe me, I will make their lives in politics as miserable as I can...if they deserve it!

I need your input. We want Gibraltar to be efficiently and professionally run.

It's possible that Peter Caruana could be capable of doing a good job...but he would have to make a 360 degree turn and start by getting his priorities straight because as I see it at present he seems to be all screwed up without knowing whether he is coming or going.

Porque no se llevan la musica a otra parte?

There you are, ya votamo en los Uropean Hellections y no hemos cogido ni sarampion.

My dear Cloti, this election has been a money saver for the Governation, not only porque pagaron otros, but the cost of pencils went down, porque instead of putting 8 crosses all we had to do was to put one.

Y el Tio del Lapiz had less to do, porque el counting was plain sailing - could have been done by a school child.

Lo que no me gusto fue el long wait. I mean, in Holland they announced the results the next day.

Sounds Double Dutch to me, pero if you say it, tiene que se verdad, my dear.

Lo que estaba feo eran esos transparent plastic bags donde metieron los votos. First, they themselves could have broken the Secrecy Rules porque anyone could have seen como votaron algunos through the bag; y secondly, parecian giant-size paquetes de patatas frita.

What a pity we do not vote last, instead of first, in that way we could have kept everyone waiting, and that would have added to our sense of importance.

Lo que es un mystery is why the Garden Party was held on a Thursday and not on the Friday as usual. There was also a change in time from 7.30 to 6.30 porque it clashed with Jesus, and in case you have forgotten, it was also Hellection Day.

And you have forgotten the parade! Como que some people had to take the day off from work to be able to be at so many places. Can you claim compensation?

I don't know about that, pero it was all a close shave. I mean, it was rather undignified to see so many dressed-up people, as if they had come from a wedding, walking about all over the place, porque no habia parking places.

Y la cosa has become worse con eso del musical nights, vamo, que nos van a dar el dia y la noche, con el old USO emptied of cars. I say, no se podrian haber llevado la musica a otra parte?

I don't see why not, porque el Navy ground is much bigger and more visible for all to watch and hear.

Claro que si. Blimey, you are so intelligent que I cannot understand porque no te han dao una medalla con esto de los birthday honours.

Oh well, I'll put in an application for you para que no te olviden next time round, after all, we have been in conversation now for over 25 years, without break.

Say no more que you break my heart. Ciao!

Adios mi alma.

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